BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) Raised to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday.

BancFirst Stock Up 5.0 %

Shares of BancFirst stock opened at $104.88 on Friday. BancFirst has a 1 year low of $79.99 and a 1 year high of $107.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The stock has a market cap of $3.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.14 and a beta of 1.04. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $87.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $88.26.

BancFirst (NASDAQ:BANF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The bank reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.42 by $0.09. BancFirst had a net margin of 24.65% and a return on equity of 14.10%. As a group, research analysts expect that BancFirst will post 5.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

BancFirst Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Friday, June 28th were paid a dividend of $0.43 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 28th. This represents a $1.72 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.64%. BancFirst’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.10%.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Dennis Jay Hannah sold 300 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.06, for a total value of $27,618.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 18,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,695,192.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Dennis Jay Hannah sold 300 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.06, for a total value of $27,618.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 18,414 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,695,192.84. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Kevin Lawrence sold 10,000 shares of BancFirst stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total value of $900,000.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $900,000. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 19,000 shares of company stock worth $1,772,860. Insiders own 33.89% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On BancFirst

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new position in BancFirst in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Global Retirement Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of BancFirst in the 1st quarter valued at $35,000. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. boosted its holdings in BancFirst by 557.1% during the first quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. now owns 506 shares of the bank’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 429 shares in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC grew its position in shares of BancFirst by 56.8% during the 1st quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 842 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 305 shares during the period. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in BancFirst in the first quarter valued at approximately $105,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 51.72% of the company’s stock.

About BancFirst

BancFirst Corporation operates as the bank holding company for BancFirst that provides a range of commercial banking services to retail customers, and small to medium-sized businesses. The company operates through BancFirst Metropolitan Banks, BancFirst Community Banks, Pegasus, Worthington, and Other Financial Services segments.